This invention relates to printing blankets and in particular to a method of making a printing blanket construction in a continuous manner or process.
Printing blankets comprised of a plurality of laminated layers are well known and widely used throughout the printing industry; and, such blankets are often used in offset lithographic printing where the function of such blankets is to transfer printing ink from associated printing plates to articles being printed.
Printing blankets of laminated construction produced by presently known techniques and methods are generally comparatively expensive due to the comparatively large number of operations required in first forming the various blanket layers and then laminating such layers together to provide the desired blanket characteristics. In particular, the processes or methods currently used in manufacturing or making such printing blankets require considerable manufacturing time; result in the generation of excessive scrap and particularly scrap which cannot be recycled; require numerous auxiliary operations such as mill processing, churning, drying, and the like; and create considerable air pollution due to the evaporation of solvents, adhesive means, and the like, employed in the lamination process.